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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · race · spring · bay · patient · wake

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. spring — the season
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. spring — a coil
  8. race — a contest
  9. cell — in biology
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. wake — a trail
  15. race — the arms race
  16. race — humankind
  17. spring — of water
  18. bay — a horse colour

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com